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Archive for the ‘green jobs’ Category

Three Finalists for Austin Energy GM Announced!

Posted in Energy, Global Warming, green jobs, tagged , , , , , on June 17, 2010 |

From the Austin Business Journal:

The finalists include Ronald Davis, Larry Weis and David Wright.
  • Ronald Davis (Burbank, Calif.) Davis has worked 30 years in the electric industry and has led Burbank Water and Power for the last 12 years. Burbank Water and Power is a municipal utility in urban Southern California with a 2009 budget of $410 million and a peak electrical load of 308 megawatts. The company adopted a 33 percent renewable energy portfolio standard in 2007.
  • Larry Weis (Turlock, Calif.) Weis is the general manager and CEO for the Turlock Irrigation District, one of the 30 largest public power utilities in the U.S., which provides water and electricity to Central Valley California. He has 29 years of experience in the electric industry, including 20 years as a general manager. TID is currently supplying 28 percent of its annual energy requirements from renewable resources.
  • David Wright (Riverside, Calif.) Wright is the general manager for the City of Riverside’s public utilities. He’s worked in the sector for more than 22 years. The Riverside Public Utilities group serves more than 300,000 residents with an annual budget of more than $500 million. He is a Certified Public Accountant and former finance director for San Diego County Water Authority. He was also city controller for Riverside before taking joining Riverside’s public utility.

As the energy industry changes rapidly, this hiring decision is critical. We will look forward to hearing more about these candidates in the coming days.

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By promoting cleaner energy, cleaner government, and cleaner air for all Texans, we hope to provide for a healthy place to live and prosper. We are Public Citizen Texas.

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Texas’ Political Culture Protects ‘Economic’ Interest Over Environment

Posted in Campaign Finance, Energy, Global Warming, Good Government, green jobs, Renewables, TCEQ, Toxics, tagged , , , , , , on June 7, 2010 |

It was a bit surprising that the EPA finally has taken a stand against the TCEQ’s practices of giving “flexible permits.” Prominent Texas politicians including the governor criticized the action taken by the EPA and once again, Gov Perry used a very important local issue to launch his attacks on the Federal government as part of his re-election campaign. “I don’t understand the federal response of coming in to the state that should be the poster child, should be the model for this country,” Perry said last week at a news conference. He was also quoted by the Houston Press saying, “Last week, the federal government sent the very clear message that it seeks to destroy Texas’s successful clean air program and threaten tens of thousands of good Texas jobs in the process.”  Perry’s claims that our air permitting program is successful is equally as dubious as his claims that we are the poster child for clean air.

Perry’s comments came at the same Texas Congress-members criticized Obama’s decision to issue a moratorium on deep-water drilling for a period that can take longer than six months. Some Congress members, who rank among the highest contribution receivers from the oil and energy industry in general, mentioned that jobs will be affected if such regulation was to take place, “”It’s exactly the wrong decision,” said Joe Barton, a Republican from Arlington, “It’s going to raise unemployment, and it’s going to raise oil prices.”

One must question the sincerity of such comments and whether they truly are accurate or not. The Dallas Morning News in an articled called “Texans in Congress say drilling support not tied to campaign donations” showed records that were obtained from Center for Responsive Politics that show how many contributions were received by Texas Congressmen:

CONTRIBUTIONS TO TEXANS IN CONGRESS

SOURCE: Center for Responsive Politics

A look at oil industry donations to members of Congress from Texas:
Member Oil/gas industry donations Rank*
Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison $2.1 million 1
Sen. John Cornyn $1.6 million 3
Rep. Joe Barton, R-Arlington $1.4 million 1
Rep. Mike Conaway, R-Midland $651,718 1
Rep. Pete Sessions, R-Dallas $642,864 2
Rep. Kay Granger, R-Fort Worth $612,807 1
Rep. Ralph Hall, R-Rockwall $529,468 3
Rep. Kevin Brady, R-The Woodlands $445,697 1
Rep. Randy Neugebauer, R-Lubbock $440,772 1
Rep. John Culberson, R-Houston $423,561 1
Rep. Chet Edwards, D-Waco $409,698 9
Rep. Sam Johnson, R-Plano $393,700 3
Rep. Lamar Smith , R-San Antonio $391,147 2
Rep. Gene Green, D-Houston $374,113 5
Rep. Mac Thornberry, R-Clarendon $351,480 1
Rep. Louie Gohmert, R-Tyler $257,063 3
Rep. Jeb Hensarling, R-Dallas $232,650 10
Rep. Solomon Ortiz, D-Corpus Christi $220,432 2
Rep. Pete Olson, R-Sugar Land $216,300 1
Rep. Ted Poe, R-Humble $208,450 3
Rep. Michael McCaul, R-Austin $207,734 6
Rep. Michael Burgess, R-Lewisville $195,246 3
Rep. Ron Paul, R-Lake Jackson $178,632 17
Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, D-Houston $173,525 6
Rep. John Carter, R-Round Rock $164,150 5
Rep. Henry Cuellar, D-Laredo $157,350 4
Rep. Charlie Gonzalez, D-San Antonio $143,500 7
Rep. Kenny Marchant, R-Coppell $139,750 1
Rep. Rubén Hinojosa, D-Mercedes $98,084 9
Rep. Ciro Rodriguez, D-San Antonio $96,500 13
Rep. Silvestre Reyes, D-El Paso $83,350 12
Rep. Lloyd Doggett, D-Austin $51,730 n/a
Rep. Eddie Bernice Johnson, D-Dallas $32,875 n/a
Rep. Al Green, D-Houston $26,400 13
NOTE: Tally includes donations from political action committees and individuals starting in 1989, for the lawmaker’s first year in office if later than 1989.
* Rank indicates where the oil industry ranked among the top industries to donate to a lawmaker. N/A means the oil industry wasn’t among the top 20 givers to that lawmaker.

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These numbers are staggering and if you want to bet that those massive contributions don’t alter or affect the decisions of those politicians, I have some beachfront property in Arizona I’d like to sell you. (more…)

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New study shows jobs from Kerry-Lieberman mostly in Nukes, CCS

Posted in Energy, Global Warming, green jobs, Nuclear, tagged , , , , , , , , , on May 21, 2010 |

One point we often forget when debating climate change strategies is the major economic case for changing our economy to new, clean technology.  A new study has been released on the impacts of the Kerry-Lieberman bill, which we’ve never been so hot on, but it shows that despite what the chicken littles at the Chamber of Commerce might spew about how a carbon cap is a jobs killer, it’s anything but.  From the NY Times articles on this story:

The Peterson Institute for International Economics said in its 18-page report that the bill from Sens. John Kerry (D-Mass.) and Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.) creates the new jobs between 2011 and 2020 because of its mandatory limits on greenhouse gases, which will prompt $41.1 billion in investments per year as the nation shifts away from traditional fossil fuels like coal and oil and toward new nuclear power and renewables.

So, good news, right? 

Looking closer at the study itself, we see something very interesting.  Michael Levi of the CFR points out that it looks more like this is a nuclear jobs bill than a climate bill,  echoing what Public Citizen’s Tyson Slocum has said repeatedly about this bill.

And indeed, here is average ANNUAL net job creation by industry from 2011-2020 according to page 12 the analysis:

  • Nuclear: 165,000
  • CCS: 96,000
  • Renewables: 19,000

Yikes.  Overall, this is a bad deal. And, this assumes that carbon sequestration is economical, safe, and practical.  But more on that later.

The sad thing is, we know what we need to do to create more jobs in renewable energy.  (more…)

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Week in Review

Posted in Coal, Consumers, Efficiency, Energy, Global Warming, Good Government, green jobs, Nuclear, Renewables, solar, tagged , , , , , , on May 21, 2010 |

Busy, busy, busy. Public Citizen staff have been making the rounds this week, traveling all over Texas in order to educate, empower, and organize citizens. From Beaumont to Dallas. From tar sands to the Public Utility Commission, we are working to protect the economic and environmental well-being of all Texans.

The Week in Review: (more…)

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Green Fund Campaign Goes 5-0

Posted in Efficiency, Global Warming, green jobs, tagged , , on May 5, 2010 |

 

Green Fund
5-0

 

Posted by Trevor Lovell
From a ReEnergize Texas press release issued April 26th

 UTSA, TAMU, UT-Austin, UT-El Paso, and North Texas

Earth Week in Texas brought a major victory for student environmentalists. Student bodies at 5 state universities voted in favor of campus “green funds.” The institutions are among some of the state’s largest – UT Austin, UT San Antonio, UT El Paso, Texas A&M University, and the University of North Texas – and the funds are expected to generate a combined $8 million for sustainability projects over their five year lifespan.

“The message was about investing in a greener future for our campus,” said Cameron Tharp who headed the campaign at the University of North Texas where 82% of students voted in favor.

If each of the funds is approved by its respective board of regents, Texas would have a total of 7 public colleges with green funds, including Texas State University and Austin Community College, both of which already have such funds in place. California currently has 10 public colleges with green funds, the most in the country. (more…)

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Monday’s Earth Week Action: Get One Person to sign on to Clean Energy for Austin!

Posted in Coal, Efficiency, Energy, Global Warming, green jobs, Renewables, solar, tagged , , , , , , , , , , on April 19, 2010 |

Wanna do something green to start off Earth Week? You can do this from your desk. Quick and easy:

  1. Sign up as a supporter for Clean Energy for Austin.
  2. Tell a friend or co-worker to sign on too!*

Austin City Council will vote on this forward-thinking energy plan this week! Clean Energy for Austin is a coalition that exists to support council passing this plan. Learn more at www.cleanenergyforaustin.org.

Public Citizen, Sierra Club, Environment Texas, Environmental Defense Fund, SEED Coalition and others endorse this plan but we need your help! Spread the word, and look forward to more easy actions as the week unfolds.

*You’d totes get a ton of karma points if you got 5 people to sign on. You’ll also get a high-five from me, which you can claim on Thursday at City Hall.

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Next Friday: Green Jobs Initiative Conference

Posted in green jobs, tagged , , , , , , , , , on March 17, 2010 |

Next Friday, March 26, Good Company Associates and the Texas Foundation for Innovative Communities are hosting a free Green Jobs Initiative Conference from 8:30 to 12:30 in Austin, Texas.

There will be panels led by industry experts in energy efficiency, renewable energy, and smart grid focusing on workforce development issues. The agenda has been posted on the registration page. The event is free, but you still have to go register.

The Green Jobs Initiative Conference will be held in the Capitol Extension Auditorium which can be seen on this map and parking information can be viewed on this map.

This looks like a great opportunity for all interested parties. Check back with us after the conference and tell us how it was and what you learned!

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By promoting cleaner energy, cleaner government, and cleaner air for all Texans, we hope to provide for a healthy place to live and prosper. We are Public Citizen Texas.

Read Full Post »

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